I know that I've already been celebrating everything fall and pumpkins, but how cute is this summer themed Hello Kitty collection at World Market? I had to take a closer look around the display when I saw this Omatsuri (Japanese festival) theme - so many cute items!

I really like that there are so many different items, like mugs, enamel pins, bento boxes, notepads just to name a few. I would love to know who is buying this enormous Hello Kitty cookie jar,
where part of the head pops off to fill with cookies, haha!

While it's still technically summer, September to me always feels like the start of fall because of all the fun fall goodies that start to come out. I saw these Pumpkin Spice Madeleines at Starbucks and had to try them out.

Even though I didn't get an overwhelming pumpkin spice taste from these, just a nice hint of spice in each bite. If you like trying pumpkin items I would definitely recommend giving these a try while they're available. The little cakes are the perfect snack with coffee or tea!

If you're a fan of pumpkin spice anything like I am, hopefully you got a chance to enjoy the debut of the fall drinks at Starbucks yesterday! I was very happy that my order from Rachel Allene's online shop arrived right before Pumpkin Spice Latte day, so I could go enjoy my first fall drink in my new steel mug.

As an added bonus, you get $0.10 off of your drink at Starbucks if you bring your own mug - all the more reason to have a fun themed mug, right? Even though it's not officially fall yet, it's never too early to enjoy some fun fall items!

Being a Sugarfina rewards member definitely has its perks, like receiving my choice of a 3 piece candy bento box for my birthday! I went to a store to pick them out in person, and decided on some fruit-based gummies to try out:

A group of friends and I went to Compass Coffee last Saturday for their coffee roasting and tasting event. I wanted to do something a little different and fun for my birthday and this was a great way to hang out with friends and learn more about coffee!

The groups are small enough that it's not just a generic tour and you can ask questions as you're going through the roasting and cupping steps. We also got to choose a tin of coffee based on what we liked during the cupping/tasting which was very nice! I would highly recommend this for anyone that's a fan of Compass, or coffee in general as a fun little event.

Even though I'm not technically eating this festive Cruffin today, it seems fitting to share this fun sprinkled treat on my birthday :o) I was happy to see a variation of Sunday Morning Bakehouse's regular Cruffins, with chocolate frosting and rainbow sprinkles. The Cruffin really is like a compact croissant, with a tasty sugar coating. The extra flavor and texture from the frosting and sprinkles is so delicious, and a great option for any type of celebration!

If you're a fan of Brad Goreski and his husband Gary Janetti like I am, you probably have seen a million photos of an iced Starbucks drink on social media linked to the two of them, haha. Brad recently posted a montage of Gary ordering the same drink at Starbucks at a bunch of locations while on vacation, and some versions of the drink seemed to fare better than others based on Gary's reaction. Of course I wasn't the only one that went out and tried "The Gary" shortly after seeing these posts!

I got the Tall version of "The Gary" and I loved it! I like almond milk to begin with and I think it adds a little extra flavor to the drink as well. I love that this fun and silly social media post got so many people to try Gary's Starbucks drink of choice :o) I also posted on Instagram that I wondered if my pre-order of Gary's book (Do You Mind if I Cancel?) would come with "The Gary", and he replied that it sadly does not, haha!

I noticed on a recent visit to my local Trader Joe's that the Mango Tangerine candles were back! This one was a quick favorite of mine when I first saw it a while ago, with a strong tropical/citrus scent.

I've since seen some posts online saying this is very similar to the Volcano Capri Blue candles that are very popular at Anthropologie stores, and I have to agree they do smell a lot like them. It's a great summery scent - be sure to grab them while they're available!

Feeling very summery with these July Georgetown Cupcake flavors! First up is the Red White and Blue Vanilla Surprise, which consists of a Vanilla cupcake infused with red, white, and blue candy nonpareils, and topped with Madagascar vanilla buttercream frosting, and red and blue fondant stars. I love Funfetti cake, and this was a delicious variation with the red, white and blue nonpareils in the cake.

I also got the Coconut Creme Cheesecake - which I knew would not be a favorite due to the coconut flavor, haha. But of course as a new flavor I had to try it! This cupcake is a Coconut cheesecake with a graham cracker crumb crust, topped with a coconut buttercream frosting, toasted coconut flakes and a fondant palm tree. So, as expected this isn't a cupcake I'd get again since I don't like coconuts, but I love the cute little palm tree, and the creamy cheesecake base doesn't have an overwhelming coconut flavor. But not to worry if you like coconut - the combination of the coconut frosting and cheesecake together definitely make it good for any fans!

Monday, July 22, 2019

I hope everyone remembered to celebrate National Ice Cream day yesterday! As luck would have it, my local Harris Teeter had a sale on Jeni's Ice Cream - 2 pints for $12! I took this opportunity to get 2 of the Jeni's flavors that I have been interested in trying - the Frosé Sorbet and the Salted Peanut Butter with Chocolate Flecks. I mean, what's better than having two different flavors to keep celebrating this important holiday, haha!

I've been a fan of Whistle & Flute's t-shirts and other goodies for a while now on Instagram, but during a recent online sale I couldn't resist getting a shirt for myself and also for my niece and nephew! I mean, the ramen shirt is clearly right up my alley, and the little face on the bowl is too cute! The kids' sushi shirts are super fun, and I love how each of the items has a tiny little face on them. The shirts feel soft and durable, which I feel like is especially important for kids' clothes. I heard that they will be doing another online sale on the 18th, so be sure to check out their website if you're interested in any of their products!

With the amount of cards that I send out, I'm always happy to see new stamp designs come out from USPS. Especially if they're fun designs like these Sesame Street stamps! These would be super cute to send out to family or friends with little ones that love Sesame Street. I only wish they had come out with extra versions that have multiples of certain characters - the Cookie Monster one especially would be fun to send, haha. Be sure to check these out if you're looking for cute new stamps!

A few Saturdays ago, Sunday Morning Bakehouse had a delicious special croissant for a great cause. The Pastrami croissant has house made Russian dressing, Swiss cheese, pastrami slices, and a little pickle to top it off. The proceeds from sales of this croissant went to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention in honor of Anthony Bourdain, which was fitting with Bourdain day being a few days prior.

I loved the smooth dressing with the tender pastrami slices, and the big, flaky croissant to bring everything together. Of course I always enjoy sweet pastries, but it's great to try savory versions like this to switch things up a bit - especially if they're going towards a great cause!

I love Georgetown Cupcake's cheesecake flavors, so I am always happy to see a new flavor that incorporates a delicious cheesecake base! The Toffee Crunch Cheesecake consists of a "Toffee cheesecake with a graham cracker crust, topped with a toffee-infused frosting and crushed toffee pieces". I didn't totally get a lot of toffee from the cheesecake, but the frosting and topping was plenty of toffee flavor and crunch for me, haha. The cheesecake itself is very rich and creamy - if you haven't tried their cheesecakes before I highly recommend them.

I also got the Cookies and Creme Birthday Fudge cupcake because it looks so fun, haha. This cupcake consists of a "Cookies & crème cupcake cored and filled with fudge, topped with a
baby blue cookies & crème buttercream, fudge star drizzle, and
rainbow jimmies". I've had this cupcake before, and it's a great twist on a cookies and creme cupcake. It's like a birthday cake with Oreos added - delicious!

I just noticed that this past weekend marks 10 years since I started this little blog! It's been a fun 10 years of a LOT of food and shopping, haha.

While not actually related, I was invited to check out the Fogo de Chão in Pike and Rose for a grand opening dinner before they officially open today, so it was a great way to "celebrate" with a delicious night of food!

The night started off with a lively cocktail hour with passed appetizers. It was also a good chance for my friend L and I to walk around the space, especially to take in the huge Market Table's offerings. After the ribbon cutting ceremony, we were seated for a full dinner experience. While it was very tempting to try everything at the Market Table, I knew I had to save room for ALL the meat that would come around to our table at a seemingly never ending pace, haha. Everything that we had was delicious, but I have to say that the featured Picanha steak and the lamb chops that came around were my favorites - so tender and flavorful! But even if you're not a total meat lover, there's plenty at the Market Table to enjoy, and I want to try their lunch/brunch sometime soon so I can have more of their non-meat dishes. Also, don't forget about dessert - The Tres Leches cake and Chocolate Mousse cake that we had were really good, and I would go to the restaurant just for drinks and that Tres Leches cake any day. A big thank you and welcome to the neighborhood Fogo de Chão, and I look forward to trying out more of your dishes soon!

Sparkling wine before dinner

Some meat appetizers before the meat dinner, haha

Love this wine wall that separates the large dining areas

Just a small segment of the huge Market Table - lots of fresh and tasty dishes

Something I wouldn't have really thought to try until a server recommended it - the Feijoada bar with a great bean stew, rice, and toppings

The bartenders were super busy all night with this crowd :)

I had some of this bacon during the reception - so good!

Side dishes were brought out first - Caramelized bananas, Polenta, Pão de Queijo (yuca flour and cheese rolls- SO good), and Garlic mashed potatoes

So many yummy cuts of meat! It was hard to keep track of what we were eating after a while because different options kept coming continuously and we didn't want to miss out on anything

Make sure you leave some room for dessert - especially the awesome Tres Leches cake!

Note: I was invited to the grand opening dinner, but was not paid for this post.

Mmm, two of my favorite foods in one - ramen and chicken Karaage! Karaage is a style of frying in Japan, usually with chicken, and is definitely the highlight of this bowl of ramen at Jinya Ramen Bar. The boneless fried chicken pieces have a rich chili sauce coating them, which adds even more flavor to the broth. Rounding out the toppings is a seasoned egg, bamboo shoots, green onion, and nori seaweed.

This special is available at Jinya Ramen Bar locations from now through the end of November, so be sure to try it out while it's on the menu!

I recently went to Commonwealth Indian, which opened recently in Pike & Rose. If any locals remember the old La Madeleine spot, this is what finally took its place. They did a really nice job completely transforming it though, and you wouldn't think it was the same restaurant space at all. I knew for my first visit I had to try the Yellow Crab Curry entree, which I've seen lots of good reviews for since they opened.

The Yellow Crab Curry consists of "Maryland jumbo crab lumps, lightly simmered in turmeric, coconut milk, red chili and royal cumin". All of the entrees came with a small salad, rice, yogurt sauce, and little Papadums. We also ordered a side of the Rosemary Naan because I can't resist some extra carbs, haha.

As you can see the crab curry has big chunks of lump crab, and it was delicious to the last spoonful! You can request varying spice levels when you order - this one was Medium spice, which had a tiny kick and was the perfect punch of flavor for me. I can definitely see why people have been raving about this dish. If you like crab dishes, you should not miss out on ordering this menu item!

Last night I was offered the chance to take a look inside the new Fogo de Chão at Pike & Rose, which is scheduled to open in just a few weeks on June 24th. I can't believe that this corner of Pike & Rose used to be a City Sports and later a Nike outlet store, it looks completely different! It was a great chance to see how they've transformed the space, with lots of thought put into large and small table groupings, as well as a separate private dining area. Here's a small tour in photos of the new space:

Outdoor patio dining area

Sleek and bright bar area - perfect for happy hour or drinks while waiting for a table - with plenty of outlets and bag hooks under the counter, always a nice touch!

I really like how bright and open the restaurant feels, and the unique light fixtures for different areas of the restaurant. These pretty flower arrangements are above the Market Table.

I also love the dark blue tiles that surround the open kitchen area, where you will be able to see lots of meat being cooked.

A giant wall sculpture of O Laçador adorns every restaurant! This is the story behind the sculpture for a bit of background.

Current menus for the Pike & Rose location - lots of options for dinner, brunch, and lunch!

I had to snap this photo quickly so it's not great, but I had to write about this delicious toast from Sunday Morning Bakehouse that I had over Memorial Day weekend!

After trying the strawberry toast over Mother's Day weekend, I was very happy to see a new flavor out at the market. I shared this with my friends on our overnight trip to VA, and we really enjoyed the combination of the thin apple slices and crunchy crumble topping. The whole toast could've been covered in the buttery crumble and we would've been happy, haha. The thick croissant toast was a delicious and sturdy base for everything on top. I'm glad I had a chance to try out this new toast flavor!

I hope everyone had a great weekend! I got to spend some time back at Bucknell University in PA for my 15-year college reunion, which was a lot of fun! It was great catching up with friends and enjoying our time on campus - especially with so many updates and new buildings since we had been there even for the last reunion. Of course I also had to get a new mug (the dark grey one in the photo below) and the "new" logo waffle maker in the cafeteria, haha. I'm already looking forward to the next chance to get back there with friends!

About Me

Easily amused, highly opinionated. Will try just about anything once, thrives equally on impulse buys and coupon usage.
Comments and suggestions for new things to try out are always welcome!
Twitter: @Kay819